Flacco on win: 'You take them how you can get them'

EARLY BIRD: Waking up with the Ravens, a day off before they prepare for Sunday’s road game against the Bears.

Two-minute topic: Can Joe Flacco raise his level of play?

After being named MVP of the Super Bowl, and signing a six-year $120 million contract, Flacco understood expectations for him would be raised this season. So far, those expectations have not been met. The Ravens are 4-5, and Flacco (12 touchdown passes, 11 interceptions, 77.3 quarterback rating) has been inconsistent.

Will that change during the final seven games? There is no doubt Flacco is capable of playing better, but coach John Harbaugh says the plays Flacco is making under duress, like Sunday in overtime, shouldn’t be overlooked.

“Certain things he has to do better, Joe would be the first to tell you that,” Harbaugh said Monday. “Those are the things we all look at. Take the flip side, we don’t win that game without Joe making just tremendous plays. I think the fact that he’s made plays out of the pocket the last few weeks, the plays he made to score the first touchdown, and then the plays he made in overtime, there are no better plays to be made outside the pocket than that. That’s something Joe is really doing really well. He’s been moving around, his eyes down the field, scramble plays, guys getting open. That’s been really big for us.”

However, the Ravens need Flacco to throw more accurately and to make better decisions than he has the past two weeks. For the Ravens to play their best football, they will need better football from Flacco.

Morning thought: “We appreciate the President and the fact he’s a huge football fan and sports fan. I’m sure he’ll be watching this game very closely, and we’ll do our best to disappoint him.” - Ravens coach John Harbaugh, talking about President Barack Obama being a Bears fan, with the Ravens preparing to face Chicago on Sunday.